Late-night at Glastonbury, and the new South East corner system

June 3, 2011

The entertainment fields in the South East corner of the Festival site – Shangri-La, Arcadia, The Common, The Unfairground and Block9 – have been a wonderful success in recent years, attracting large and enthusiastic crowds. The down side is that congestion has built year on year to the extent that in 2010 it was uncomfortable for the audience and concerning for organisers.

The question of how to make this eclectic part of the Festival a better experience for festival-goers taxed Glastonbury organisers over the winter. After much debate it has been decided that the only effective way to keep it safe and make sure everyone enjoys the spectacle is to limit the numbers in that area at any one time.

So, this year, between the hours of 11.00pm and 4.00am on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, it will not be possible to access the South East corner by walking along the railway track. If you’d like to go to these fields during these hours the access will be through Glebeland – the theatre field. From there will be a walkway behind Circus and Cabaret fields into Arcadia and then into Shangri-la. Once in that area festival-goers will be able to go from one field to another enjoying the different performances.

There will be three exits from the area – along the railway track; into the Field of Avalon; and into the Cabaret Field. Once you have left these fields, to re-enter you will have to return to Glebeland. The railway track is exit-only between these hours.

If numbers build in this area in the early hours, festival-goers will wait in Glebeland and only be allowed in the walkway if there is sufficient space in the fields in the south east corner.

In the past there have been no constraints at Worthy Farm on where festival-goers can go at any time – and the decision to make these restrictions was not lightly taken. But it is a positive move to ensure that festival goers can enjoy this wonderful area safely.

If people do not wish to wait in the queue, they can easily leave the Theatre field and look to enjoy some of the other great entertainment at the Festival which runs into the early hours. Below is a list of some of the other late-night options dotted across the Festival site (click the venue names to visit their pages).